Casey Chairs Final Aging Committee Hearing on Disability Rights

U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, held an Aging Committee hearing entitled “Empowering People with Disabilities to Live, Work, Learn, and Thrive.” At the hearing, Chairman Casey highlighted his long record as a champion for people with disabilities, and laid out his vision for how Congress must continue to work to empower them. The hearing was Casey’s last as Chairman of the Aging Committee.

“From the beginning of my time in the Senate, I heard a constant refrain from disability advocates that their needs were not being met—they faced barriers to save for their future, they were being paid well below a living wage, and they could not afford or access the care they needed,” said Chairman Casey. “Those refrains, including from some of the people we heard from at today’s hearing, are what inspired me to make people with disabilities a focus of my Senate career and time as Aging Committee Chairman.”

During his 18 years in the Senate, Chairman Casey has been one of the foremost champions in Washington for people with disabilities. He created the ABLE program, which has helped hundreds of thousands of people with disabilities save for their future, made federal websites more accessible for people with disabilities, and propelled the fight for access to home care to the forefront of the national conversation. At the hearing, he highlighted this record, but also made clear that there is more work to be done.

“We have made a lot of progress, from creating the ABLE program to making government technology more accessible,” Chairman Casey continued. “But as we heard today, there is still a lot more to do—from expanding access to home care to finally phasing out the subminimum wage.”

At the hearing, witnesses from Pennsylvania and national organizations testified about the impact of Chairman Casey’s work on the disability community in the Commonwealth and around the country.

Ai-Jen Poo, President of the National Domestic Workers Alliance: “I want to thank Senator Casey for your leadership. None of the successes I outlined would have been possible without your steadfast championship, advocacy and partnership. It is daunting to think about facing the challenges ahead, particularly the threats to Medicaid, without you at the helm, but we have been emboldened to reimagine what is possible because of your leadership.”

Neil McDevitt, Mayor of North Wales, PA: “Senator Casey, you have been a steadfast ally of North Wales Borough, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and millions of disabled and Deaf Americans. We owe you a debt that can never be repaid.”

Erin Willman, CEO of White Cane Coffee in Warren, PA: “Things are actually changing. We are not yet where we need to be when it comes to disability access and acceptance, but we are getting there. It brings me great joy when I hear of disabled people in my community getting good paying jobs and not being relegated to sheltered workshops for less than minimum wage.”

Lydia Brown, Director of Policy, National Disability Institute: “Ten years ago, Senator Casey’s leadership in introducing and passing The ABLE Act changed the game. People whose disabilities began before age 26 can now access a savings vehicle that can conserve up to $100,000 total without their savings counting against them in determining eligibility for SSI and Medicaid. Money in an ABLE account can be used for a wide range of qualified disability expenses, including otherwise unaffordable assistive technology and health care, as well as educational and employment related costs. For many disabled people on Medicaid, an ABLE account is also their only available means to save for retirement.”

During the hearing, Chairman Casey released a series of issue briefs detailing his record chairing the Aging Committee on making government technology accessible, expanding access to home care, improving nursing homes, lowering prescription drug costs, and ensuring economic security for older adults.

Full Article & Source:
Casey Chairs Final Aging Committee Hearing on Disability Rights

Casey Holds Aging Committee Hearing on Protecting Older Adults Who Are Targeted by Frauds and Scams

September 19, 2024

At hearing, Casey released annual Aging Committee Fraud Book

Hearing featured testimony from PA scam victim, law enforcement about how to prevent scams and support victims

Casey touted his report on how 2017 Republican tax law penalized scam victims

Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, held an Aging Committee hearing entitled “Fighting Fraud: How Scammers Are Stealing from Older Adults.” The hearing highlighted the psychological and economic impacts that frauds and scams have older adults, who are disproportionately targeted by fraudsters.

During the hearing, Casey unveiled the Aging Committee’s annual Fraud Book, which provides seniors with an overview of the most prevalent scams to help them identify and avoid being victimized. The Fraud Book also contains resources for scam victims. In addition to the Fraud Book, Casey touted his report on the 2017 Republican tax law, called “Scammed Then Taxed,” which details how the law’s repeal of the theft loss deduction has imposed significant taxes on many scam victims.

“At today’s hearing, we heard tragic stories from scam victims and law enforcement about how fraudsters are getting more sophisticated and aggressive with their scams and throwing the lives of older adults into chaos,” said Chairman Casey. “We must do everything we can to educate older adults about the threats they face from frauds and scams. We must also do more to provide resources for those who have been victimized by scams, including those who have been forced to pay taxes on money they’ve lost due to changes in the 2017 Republican tax law.”

Chairman Casey invited Susan Whittaker, an Administrative Assistant at Lehigh County Aging and Adult Services in Allentown, PA, to testify at the hearing about her late husband’s experience as a scam victim. Susan testified, “This scam was devastating and had a devasting effect on Bill—both financially and emotionally. Because we lost $20,000, and Bill had a lot of chronic health conditions, Bill began to ration his medications. We just couldn’t afford them anymore… He also lost his sense of self-worth. I was really sad to see this very intelligent and past business owner, become so afraid to read emails and use a phone. It was a huge setback for him, and I think contributed to his worsening health conditions...he stopped living.”

Source:
Casey Holds Aging Committee Hearing on Protecting Older Adults Who Are Targeted by Frauds and Scams

Elder Eyes Wide Shut

By Jaimee K Martello 

World Elder Abuse Awareness Day was on June 15^th.  Father’s Day was June 16^th.  Many are not aware of WEAAD.  I only know it exists because of a book I started co-writing with a friend.  A legal guardian and conservator have hijacked her father’s life and estate and she cannot get him out.  To date over half a million dollars have been billed to estate; he is drugged to incapacitation so that he cannot defend himself in court.  My friend, his daughter, is terrified and panicked.  Fighting with every cell of her energy that has not been killed in the process against the system.

It is consuming my thoughts and destroying my perspective on reality.  I had a sit-down with my parents to pass along what I learned about elder abuse through this project.  I had to warn them.

My friend, who I will call Lilly to protect her and her family, is amidst a legal battle with her sibling and a cabal of lawyers over the legal guardianship and conservatorship of her 74-year-old father, though he can still make decisions.  His decisions are neither recognized nor respected by the family courts.  As Americans, we complain about our presidents being in their 70s or 80s, but our parents are pretty damn young, smart, physical, and capable at 70.

Lilly explains her father’s life had been kidnapped.  Sacrificed, slowly, for the cash cow underbelly of the legal system.  His bank accounts have been drained.  Property for sale.  Her bank account is near zero as she spends the only dollars left fighting for her dad against his conservator and legal guardian.  This week she received a petition against her home.  She co-owns a condo with her dad, and they want it.  By technicality, they have that legal right.

My jaw is dropped and I have a perpetual pit in my stomach.  I fear for her but I also tread with caution.  Is this real?  Lilly keeps saying it feels like a movie, when I remember… I’ve seen this movie.

I Care a Lot, starring Rosamund Pike, dropped on Netflix in 2020.  It is a horror movie veiled by black comedy.  How many more horrors could we take in 2020?

The IMDB logline is “A crooked legal guardian who drains the savings of her elderly wards meets her match when a woman she tries to swindle turns out to be more than she first appears.”  It does not say “Based on a True Story.”

Was my old friend, Lilly, feeding me a story?  We don’t live in the same state and haven’t seen each other in a while.  Was she plugging a controversy into ChatGPT and reading it back to me?

As a writer and content producer, I attempted to write a memoir treatment to help her expose this life-altering story.  We talk for hours and hours each week.   The transference of fear I have includes the sit down with my parents and the countless speculation, anger, and sadness my husband must endure.

In 2021, Esquire quoted J Blakeson, writer and director behind I Care a Lot. “The idea first came when I heard news stories about these predatory legal guardians who were exploiting this legal loophole and exploiting the vulnerability in the system to take advantage of older people, basically stripping them of their life and assets to fill their own pockets.”

This is real, and yet, I had a hard time suspending my disbelief.  I ignorantly believed the world was just.  Scratch the silver screen.  This is happening, and hiding, in plain sight.

Lilly told me about her struggle to find a lawyer to help her.  Criminal law would not touch her case.  Everyone pointed to elder law.  She followed their advice and held confidential consultations with three elder law attorneys, but no one took her case.  Instead, one took that information and colluded with her sibling to take action on her father’s estate.  The first lawyer nominated the second one to represent her father’s temporary legal guardian and conservator until the third was nominated to be his permanent conservator.  By the book, any court-appointed justice would deem this is as unethical.  100 percent a violation of the lawyer-client code.  But this crime is layered and seems to be protected by the courts.  But we must swear and solemnly affirm that what we shall state shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the—

They took the very truths and words against her.  Framed Lilly as the abuser and the reason her father should be under a legal guardian.  While having their cake and eating it too, they rarely know the life inside of a jail cell, or a life removed of agency.  God bless we live to an old age, but god be damned if we get taken by this scandal.  That our lives can be stolen, frozen, and drugged.  For profit.

I went into research mode.  I found several documentaries and news stories attempting to blow the whistle. Mickey Rooney produced a documentary on elder guardianship and exploitation in 2012 called Last Will and Embezzlement.  Headlines pick up the Wendy Williams conservatorship daily.  The #FreeBritney Campaign was a viral sensation.  Mad in America has an informative interview, “’A Playground for Predators’: Diane Dimond on The Abuses of Guardianship.”  Dimond includes too many true stories on the topic, and lists many resources and knowledge to help blow the whistle.

In 2018, true crime director Billie Mintz released The Guardians, an expose on a legal kidnapping business in Nevada.  I had a visceral reaction.  The lawyers, the courts, the nursing staff, and the victims spit lyrics verbatim of what Lilly had told me.  I cold-called the Mintz.

I’ve worked in non-scripted and editorial television since the early aughts.  I pitched my credits in hopes of verifying my ethical intent for a call.  He offered a time for the three of us to speak.

The film exposes a trillion-dollar business.  An unjust common practice that is duplicitously supported and enforced by so-called legal practices.  “Do not go to the courts,” he said on our call.  “They are in on it.”  In the deep waters of directing The Guardians, Mintz learned elder law, and the injustice and inhumane practice of legal guardianship is a calculated effort by the court, the attorneys, and the healthcare system.  He said he entered this world as I did, with reluctance and skepticism.  He could not accept this corruption as fact.  There had to be a catch.  A victim exposed why we cannot imagine these injustices to reach far and wide.  “I had to learn.  There is no universal moral code.”  I’ve been playing those words on repeat daily.  There is no universal moral code.

Lilly told Mintz her backstory.  Her father was very successful and owned many commercial and residential properties.  Her mother passed not long before and he was grieving the loss of a marriage lasting half a decade.  She and her sibling were estranged.  She was appointed, by her father, as power of attorney and health proxy if in the event it was needed.  Her sibling served her papers to remove her titles and take control of her father’s assets.

Between her sibling and a ring of lawyers, blessed by the judge again and again, her father’s financials were compromised and now out of his control. The lawyers found doctors who would willingly sign false statements that he was unable to take care of himself, and they made untrue and harmful claims that Lilly was unable to care for him.  One attorney drugged him to incapacitation so that he was medically unfit to attend the trial.  A judgment can be made without a man in court.

“This is a business.  You are a target.”  Mintz went on.  And I swallowed the harrowing truth.  There is no universal moral code.  He broke down the viciousness of this organized crime and what he learned first-hand while in production.  What is happening to Lilly is textbook.  Play-by-play.  WWE-style blow-by-blow.  The lawyers love it when you push back.  It is a drug.  If it were Vegas, the lawyers would be the house.  You can come to play, but the house always wins.  Lilly remembers a lawyer threatening her: “If you push back, we will ruin you and drain your assets.”

One of the victims in the documentary The Guardians, Julie Belshe, who lost her both of her parents, Rudy and Rennie North to conservatorship, fought tooth and nail to get the District Attorney and the Attorney General to listen, investigate and send their kidnapper April Parks to prison.  She now continues the battle by leading the National Guardianship Liberty Movement.  Belshe confirmed the cycle is a minefield of layering and lawyering.  It is built for you to set off bombs one by one, and the lawyers or the judge step in to provide a solution, one that will then destroy every ounce of faith, every dollar of cash, and every square foot of real estate.

One in ten citizens over the age of 60 suffer elder abuse.  We aren’t expected to retire until 67.  I am not advocating for presidents being at this age, but if they can rule the country, why are our loved ones at such a life-threatening risk?  We work and work and work in the land of the free and the home of the brave to wait for our social security check and now must fear someone taking it from us?  Your golden years ring different when someone else is on the receiving end of your hard-earned cash.

Belshe drew me a diagram and laundry listed the players.  “Everyone is in on it.”  Lawyers, courts, social workers, hospice, doctors, nurses, nursing homes, realtors, rehab centers, and attorney generals.  It goes on.  They wrongfully trick you into legal guardianship, identify vulnerabilities whether a rift in the family or an elder that lives alone, and then attack.  They manage a successful transfer of power to their firm, legally, then reframe your will, your property, your accounts, and your family’s character to their narrative.  They defame and defund you.

“And Lilly’s sibling is a f*cking idiot.”  Belshe said.  “He won’t get a dime.  They are playing him too.”  They spend down.  They bring in a suite of aids, doctors, and physicians that the victim does not need, bill back the hours, generate interest on your money, and liquidate your funds until the elder is on Medicaid.  They accelerate their death and cremate them.

There is no universal moral code.  Just because I am good, and I have empathy, does not mean others do.  It is the removal of our independence—one that this country prides itself on daily.  That which makes us human, more importantly.  Yet, Lady Liberty looks down on us and laughs.

I follow a lawyer/influencer on Instagram/TikTok.  The firm claims to “be different.”  And I’m in too deep not to test the waters.  I emailed them asking for guidance on a case like this.  In under two hours, I received a form letter response.  A form letter I’ve heard Lilly read to me time and time again regarding her quest for help.  After careful consideration….  We regret to…. Seek assistance from a firm that specializes in this type of practice.

The specialists are the enemy.  And I am struggling to find the heroes in this scripted alternate reality.

There are professional criminals in our system who are provided a funded playing field, and sworn into law.  I wish we could tell the whole truth, but this legal mafia is a well-oiled machine, which appears to be veiled and protected by the state itself.

Lilly and I had a call with an acclaimed journalist.  Her take was that American citizens will rally for our elders because we are all destined for their future.  We are in the early stretches of the Silver Tsunami, which is the highest percentage of elders our country has known.  This is the time to knock on the media’s doorstep.  Someone in politics would rally around this during an election year.  (Yet another one in the system capitalizing on this crime.)

Yet we’ve yet to find an investigator to help a family whose monies have been depleted.

We know there is an audience out there.  We are all subject to abuse.  I ask you, rally with us.  Share your common stories and make noise.  Suspend your disbelief and learn secondhand how our country is endorsing terroristic acts against our twilight years.

The United States Senate Special Committee on Aging estimates 1.3 million adult guardianships in the United States and an estimated $50 billion in assets under guardianship arrangements.  Try to remember you are not alone.

You do not need someone to tell you no way, oh my god, I can’t believe it, who would do such a thing?  Find a social support system of others who understand and know this is real.  You need a network that says I know.  This is what we are going to do.

Full Article & Source:
Elder Eyes Wide Shut

Misericordia faculty member testifies to the Senate Special Committee on Aging

1/25/2024 11:35 AM

Misericordia faculty member testifies to the Senate Special Committee on Aging

William Stauffer, LSW, CCS, CADC, adjunct professor of Social Work at Misericordia University, addressed the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging's hearing on the topic "Understanding a Growing Crisis: Substance Use Disorder Among Older Adults," held on December 14 in Washington, D.C. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) serves as chairman of the committee and conducted the hearing.

Stauffer, who is also the executive director of The Pennsylvania Recovery Organizations - Alliance, returned to speak to the Special Committee following his testimony during a 2018 hearing on the growing need for Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) services for older Americans.

The topic of Stauffer's testimony during the committee's December hearing focused on the stigma in healthcare and our communities regarding older adults with Substance Use Disorder (SUD).

"Stigma is a huge issue; it keeps things invisible. When a loved one dies from an alcohol-related fall, the underlying issue doesn't get reported. When someone dies from SUD, the root cause doesn't get reported," said Stauffer. "One in three healthcare providers believes that people can and do recover from SUD. If only one in three providers think people recover, people won't go to them for help. Research shows that people who get help, treatment, and the support they need will recover."

This is particularly true, according to Stauffer, for our older adult community members.

"We ignore them when they are suffering. Stigma prevents older patients from reporting they have a problem, the medical community in asking patients questions about substance use, and it even prevents family members from seeking help for their loved ones. As a result of these dynamics, perhaps the most significant fact is that we do not know the true prevalence of SUDs in the older population," he testified to the committee.

The young adults from 1978 who are turning 75 this year, had the highest level of substance use over their lifetime than those before them. According to U.S. Census Bureau data, the median age in the U.S. last year was 38.9 years. In Pennsylvania, the median age was 40.9 years, the oldest of any state in the nation. Pennsylvania currently ranks fifth in the nation when it comes to the size of its population aged 65 and older (2.2 million).

The demographics reveal that our population of older adults will be increasing over the next 20 years. "We will need to think more critically about what we do concerning older adults. There are going to be even more of us in the coming years; we cannot afford to ignore their needs any longer," he said. 

The trends for substance use, dependence, and addiction mortality trends in older adults are alarming. The rate of drug use in people over 40 is increasing faster than it is among younger age groups. Drug-related deaths for users over 50 increase by 3% annually. Seventy-five percent of deaths from SUDs among users aged 50 and older are caused by opioids. In 2020, alcohol-induced causes were recorded as the underlying cause of death for 11,616 adults aged 65 and over, and age-related death rates for alcohol-induced causes have been increasing since 2011.

"We need to get ahead of this curve by providing prevention, treatment, and recovery community support for older adults," said Stauffer during his testimony.

The question then becomes, what can we do the help older adults with SUD in our communities?

Stauffer encourages the entire community — friends and loved ones of older adults with SUD, as well as medical professionals — to think about SUD in a different way; to provide care and support to these individuals the way we do with other chronic conditions like cancer, diabetes or high blood pressure.

"Older adults are looking for a purpose; let's use the talents and skills they have and support them. I've never met a person who has talents and skills that they don't want to share. We could develop an older Adult Recovery Community Corps for older adults looking for a purpose; to pair them with others to share their talents and skills while providing hope, purpose, and connection," he said.

Pennsylvania is already heading in this direction. Governor Shapiro signed an executive order last year to develop a Master Plan for Older Adults, a 10-year strategic plan designed to transform the infrastructure and coordination of services for older Pennsylvanians. It includes a focus on SUD treatment and recovery needs.

"This is a vital step to identifying not only the challenges our older adult community members face, but also their inherent strengths and talents that they offer to our society," said Stauffer.

In addition to community support, the focus of healthcare needs to change. "We need to shift our SUD service system to focus beyond acute stabilization; we do not cover all of the treatment services older adults require to sustain recovery from an SUD. Roughly 85% of people who sustain five years of recovery remain in recovery for life, but older adults don’t get a full continuum of support, because we do not fund it," he testified.

The work of the committee is far from over. Stauffer has already been contacted with additional questions from Senator Casey's staff, who are scheduling a follow-up meeting with Stauffer at his Harrisburg offices.

To watch Stauffer's testimony, click here. For more information about Misericordia's Social Work Program, click here. 

Source:
Misericordia faculty member testifies to the Senate Special Committee on Aging

Casey, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Bolster Home Care Workforce

October 24, 2023

In a 2022 report, over 70 percent of direct service providers reported they cannot fill staffing vacancies for home care

As a result, 83 percent of providers said they turn away new referrals and 63 percent have discontinued some programs and services

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, led a group of 17 of his Democratic colleagues in introducing the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Relief Act, legislation to provide much-needed support to state programs that fund home and community-based long-term care services. Currently, staffing shortages at direct care providers have led to a reduction in HCBS availability, despite growing demand. The HCBS Relief Act would provide dedicated Medicaid funds to states for two years to stabilize their HCBS service delivery networks, recruit and retain HCBS direct care workers, and meet the long-term service and support needs of people eligible for Medicaid home and community-based services. 

“A vast majority of seniors and people with disabilities would prefer to receive care at home or in their communities,” said Chairman Casey. “Unfortunately, because of our Nation’s caregiving crisis, home and community-based care has become increasingly difficult to access. By stabilizing and investing in the caregiving workforce, we can better provide seniors and people with disabilities with a real and significant choice to receive care in the setting of their choosing.” 

More than 90% of those eligible for Medicaid long-term services and supports wish to receive those services in their homes. However, HCBS providers are struggling to meet the demand for their services due to extreme difficulty retaining staff and filling new vacancies. Under the HCBS Relief Act, States would receive a 10-point increase in the federal match (FMAP) for Medicaid for two fiscal years to enhance HCBS. Funds could be used to increase direct care worker pay, provide benefits such as paid family leave or sick leave, and pay for transportation expenses to and from the homes of those being served. The additional funds also can be used to support family caregivers, pay for recruitment and training of additional direct care workers, and pay for technology to facilitate services. 

Chairman Casey has a long record of advocating for increased federal support for state-funded home and community-based long-term care services. In January 2023, Chairman Casey introduced the Better Care Better Jobs Act, with 41 co-sponsors, to enhance Medicaid funding for home care services for older adults, people with disabilities, and injured workers to help many of the over 650,000 people on waiting lists nationally finally receive care in the setting of their choice; increase payment rates to promote recruitment and retention of direct care workers, increase wages, and develop and update training opportunities; and provide support to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to conduct oversight and encourage innovation to benefit direct care workers and care recipients. 

In March, Chairman Casey held a hearing to examine the economic benefit of investing in Medicaid home and community-based services (HCBS) as millions of older adults and people with disabilities nationwide rely on caregivers to provide everyday services like help with bathing, eating, and managing medications despite caregivers earning a median wage of roughly $14 per hour and often living in poverty. During the hearing, Casey introduced the HCBS Access Act to address lengthy waiting lists, that sometimes last years and even decades, for home care services as the majority of older adults and people with disabilities contend with being forced to live in an institutional setting to access the services they need due to long wait lists, despite a preference for receiving care at home.  

Read more about the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Relief Act here. 

###?

Source:
Casey, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Bolster Home Care Workforce

Senators Urge Examination of Guardianship Laws

by MyChesCo

© Sasirin Pamai's Images / Canva

U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging Chairman Bob Casey (D-PA) and Ranking Member Mike Braun (R-IN) sent a letter this week to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) regarding guardianship laws across the Nation. There are an estimated 1.3 million older adults and people with disabilities in guardianships, which are legal relationships created when a court determines that a person is incapable of making important decisions on their own. Considering the lack of data on guardianships across the U.S., Senators Casey and Braun requested GAO examine and report on guardianship laws throughout the country, the use of guardianships, and efforts to reform the guardianship system.

Recent Senate Special Committee on Aging testimony and media reports suggest that guardian abuse and fraud can have devastating effects. Such abuse can deprive older adults, people with disabilities, and others of their rights, their financial security, and even contact with their families.

“Although many guardians live up to their obligations, testimony and media stories illustrate the dark side of guardianships. Some adults are wrongly placed into guardianships, which can be unnecessarily restrictive and violate their rights.  The status of people under guardianships may be ‘poorly monitored in sufficient, meaningful, and diligent ways,’ resulting in ‘exploitation, abuse, and neglect,’” wrote the Senators.

The majority of people in guardianships are seniors and people with disabilities. Many need permission to see a doctor, take or refuse medication, live in in their own homes, spend their own money, and even vote. They also face increased risk of abuse, neglect, and exploitation by unscrupulous guardians. Efforts to reform guardianship systems and options for states to promote less restrictive alternatives are varied across the country.

Read the letter here.

Full Article & Source:
Senators Urge Examination of Guardianship Laws

Senators Propose Guardianship ‘Bill of Rights’ to Limit Abuse (1)

The US Senate Special Committee on Aging held a hearing Thursday to explore alternatives to guardianships, which limit the rights of adults to make their own decisions and can lead to fraud and abuse.

Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg

by Holly Barker

• Proposed legislation unveiled at committee hearing
• Nationwide, system operates under scattershot rules, scant data

Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) proposed legislation Thursday he said will help eliminate guardianship abuses by seeking alternatives to the restrictive process now in place, targeting a system marked by scant scrutiny and widespread fraud.

His bill, titled the Guardianship Bill of Rights Act and cosponsored by Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), would create a national council charged with promoting less restrictive arrangements for people living under or being considered for court-ordered guardianships.

“In many cases, a guardianship is a blunt legal tool that transfers all decision making power about the life of a person to someone else,” Casey said at a hearing of the US Senate Special Committee on Aging. They “can also put a person at risk for abuse, neglect and exploitation.”

The council would recommend practices to help people end guardianships, avoid them altogether or modify them. And, it would collect data on guardianships both at the state and national level, aiming to close the giant data gap that now exists.

In the three weeks leading to the hearing, the committee said it received 312 statements from 40 states and territories about oft-troubled guardianships. A Bloomberg Law investigation published this month detailed a national system in peril.

Casey also said he was supporting a bill proposed by Ranking Committee Member Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.) called the Guardianship Grant Flexibility Act, which would allow law students to serve as guardians and guardians ad litem in their communities.

Braun cited “harrowing tales” of people’s rights being taken away “in the single stroke of a pen.”

His bill would expand the activities authorized under Adult Protective Services demonstration grants, allowing law students to provide representation under the supervision of licensed attorneys.

Ryan King, who was under guardianship for 13 years before extracting himself from the system,told committee members he learned about supported decision making, where a formal guardianship is not ordered. Instead, a group of supporters provide counsel to the so-called “protected person.”

“I can do many things on my own, but sometimes I need help,” said King.

(Updates with details about one of the proposed bills in the eighth paragraph. A previous version of this story corrected the attribution of a quote in the seventh paragraph. )

Full Article & Source:
Senators Propose Guardianship ‘Bill of Rights’ to Limit Abuse (1)

Collins, Casey Bill to Reauthorize Older Americans Act Passes Senate Unanimously

The landmark law supports community-based and nutrition services for older adults and their caregivers and is critical to improving the lives of seniors

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

Washington, D.C.—The U.S. Senate unanimously passed the Supporting Older Americans Act.  The bipartisan legislation, authored by U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Bob Casey (D-PA), the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Aging Committee, would reauthorize and strengthen the Older Americans Act (OAA), the nation’s preeminent law focused on the wellbeing of seniors.  The bill has now been sent to the House for its consideration before heading to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

Since 1965, the OAA has supported and improved the lives of seniors—particularly those who are low-income—through programs that promote nutrition (e.g. Meals on Wheels), improve transportation options, support caregivers, offer employment and community service opportunities, and prevent abuse and neglect.  This critical law was last reauthorized in 2016.

“For more than half a century, the Older Americans Act has served as a lifeline for millions of seniors by enriching their lives and improving their overall health,” said Senator Collins.  “This bipartisan legislation will help ensure that the OAA continues to match the goals we set to permit seniors to age with dignity, respect, and community.  As Chairman of the Senate Aging Committee, it is one of my highest priorities to get this bill across the finish line to strengthen the OAA’s programs while providing more flexibility for states to meet local needs.  I am pleased that the Senate unanimously passed our legislation, and I urge the House to approve it swiftly so that it can be enacted into law.”

“The Older Americans Act serves more than 10 million Americans each year, including 400,000 people throughout Pennsylvania. It represents our commitment to the generations who made us who we are today and lifts up the seniors who need our help the most. I’m pleased that this bill has broad bipartisan support in the Senate and look forward to getting this bill signed into law,” said Senator Casey. “This legislation will direct resources to support grandparents and older relative caregivers as well as multigenerational engagement and will ensure that our Area Agencies on Aging are prepared to meet seniors where they are – in their homes and communities.”

“On behalf of the Leadership Council of Aging Organizations (LCAO), we appreciate the bipartisan, and bicameral proposal to reauthorize the Older Americans Act (OAA),” said Debra Whitman, Chair of LCAO, the coalition of national nonprofit organizations working on behalf of America’s older adults.  “We enthusiastically endorse the Supporting Older Americans Act of 2020, H.R. 4334, and look forward to its passage to support our growing aging population and help assure their healthy longevity.”

  

“The Supporting Older Americans Act builds on OAA’s powerful legacy of providing our loved ones with the support they need to live independently and with dignity as they age,” said Megan O’Reilly, Vice President for AARP Government Affairs, Federal Health and Family. “Over the years, OAA has helped so many older Americans across the nation stay in their communities among friends, neighbors, and family through caregiver support, home-delivered meals, and transportation. AARP commends Special Committee on Aging Chair Susan Collins and Ranking Member Bob Casey for their leadership in ushering the bipartisan reauthorization of this legislation across the finish line in the Senate.”

“n4a is thrilled that the Senate has passed the Supporting Older Americans Act of 2020,” said n4a CEO Sandy Markwood. “This bill is the result of months of negotiations among Senate and House leadership, as well as aging policy advocates and n4a members here in Washington and around the country. For more than 50 years, the Older Americans Act has funded services that support older adults and enhance their ability to continue living in the community. These programs reduce the likelihood that older adults will experience hunger, malnutrition, social isolation and elder abuse. The Older Americans Act also supports the continued ability of older adults and their caregivers to access services that provide transportation, caregiver supports, meals, in-home services and so many more programs that are essential to community living.”

"Reauthorization of the Older Americans Act is a great victory for the aging services network and those we serve, said Dyan Walsh, MSW, Executive Director of the Eastern Area Agency on Aging in Maine.  “There are many important provisions in the bill, not the least of which is the focus on research to study the negative consequences of social isolation and loneliness which impacts so many rural older adults.   We look to the future with a renewed focus to integrate innovative strategies that will advance our mission to support communities and those who are the most vulnerable.”

Administered by the Administration for Community Living (ACL), the OAA authorizes an array of services through a network of 56 State Units on Aging and more than 600 Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) serving older Americans throughout the nation.

In the last year alone, OAA programs:

• Served more than 700,000 caregivers; and

• Provided seniors across the country with 358 million meals.

In addition to supporting seniors, OAA programs are cost effective.  The average cost of serving one senior Meals on Wheels for the entire year is $2,828, compared to the average of $2,424 it costs to stay for a single day in the hospital and the approximately $2,530 it costs to stay just ten days in in a semi-private room in a nursing home.  By providing seniors with a hot meal, the Older Americans Act improves nutrition and keeps seniors out of the hospital, allowing them to age in their homes and communities.  In fact, every $1 invested into the Older Americans Act generates $3 to help seniors stay at home and out of the hospital through low-cost, community-based services.

Specifically, the bipartisan bill would:

• Reauthorize the Older Americans Act for five years with funding levels that better meet the growing needs, including a 7 percent increase in the initial year, and 6 percent increase annually for the remainder of the authorization;
• Extend the RAISE Family Caregivers Act for one additional year;
• Extend the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Council for one year;
• Improve the availability of transportation resources to seniors;
• Enhance flexibility for states to better address the needs of grandparents raising grandchildren;
• Ensure that those living with younger onset Alzheimer’s disease are included in key OAA services;
• Increase the focus on addressing detrimental impacts of social isolation;
• Advance support for age-friendly communities.
• Improve elder abuse prevention activities through increased outreach and education activities.
• Increase transparency of home-modification opportunities for eligible older adults.
• Upgrade data collection methods to understand unmet need in nutrition programs.
• Promote multigenerational programming.
• Bolster innovation in the OAA through thoughtful evaluation of demonstrations and existing programs.

In May, Senators Collins and Casey held an Aging Committee hearing to highlight the importance of reauthorizing the OAA.  In December, Senator Collins spoke on the Senate floor in support of the OAA’s passage.

Senators Collins and Casey’s bill is cosponsored by Senators Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Patty Murray (D-WA), Martha McSally (R-AZ), Doug Jones (D-AL),  Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Tina Smith (D-MN), Cory Gardner (R-CO), Gary Peters (D-MI), Steve Daines (R-MT), Jack Reed (D-RI), Pat Roberts (R-KS), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Rick Scott (R-FL) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH).

This reauthorization is supported by more than 128 organizations including the Leadership Council of Aging Organizations, AARP, the National Area Agencies on Aging (n4a), Advancing States, the National Association of Nutrition and Aging Services Programs (NANASP), National Alliance for Caregiving, Meals on Wheels America, the Jewish Federations of North America, National Council on Aging (NCOA), and the Alzheimer’s Association.

Full Article & Source:
Collins, Casey Bill to Reauthorize Older Americans Act Passes Senate Unanimously

Fighting Fraud: A Guide to Keeping Your Money Safe

OHIO— Scams targeting the elderly are on the rise, and it's not just strangers who try to take advantage of aging adults.

It's often those who are closest to seniors — neighbors, friends, and even family members are responsible.

An Ohio law is on the books, designed to reduce how often older Ohioans are defrauded and increase the financial penalties for those who exploit the elderly.

The bill increases financial penalties for theft from someone older than 65. It mandates someone convicted to pay full restitution, plus a fine of up to $50,000.

Even with increased awareness and efforts by lawmakers, more than 3,630 cases of elder exploitation were reported across Ohio in 2018, according to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.

Legislation to combat elder fraud and exploitation was signed into law this week, an effort led by State Senator @SteveWilsonOH. Learn more about #SB158→https://t.co/cT316HUb9I pic.twitter.com/SwvoGyPVAc

— Ohio Senate GOP (@OhioSenateGOP) December 20, 2018

Fraud against elder citizens are on the rise and the myriad way con artists use to gain access to your money continues to grow. Learn the signs of elder abuse and neglects, and make yourself aware of the many scams that prey on the elderly.

We've listed just a few of the most common ways that criminals try to seperate you from your money.  This list could literally go on for pages and pages.  Visit the common fraud page at the FBI for more details.

KNOW THE SCAMS

• Advance Fee Schemes

An advance fee scheme occurs when the victim pays money to someone in anticipation of receiving something of greater value—such as a loan, contract, investment, or gift—and then receives little or nothing in return.

• Counterfeit Prescription Drugs

Counterfeit prescription drugs are illegal, fake medicines that may be hazardous to your health.

• Credit Card Fraud

Credit card fraud is the unauthorized use of a credit or debit card, or card number, to fraudulently obtain money or property.

Every year millions of elderly Americans fall victim to creative criminals who make up stories to gain their trust, and then deceive them. Help the #FBI stop #ElderFraud. Take steps to protect your loved ones today. https://t.co/xX4M9HYT4u pic.twitter.com/c88UKql4Qn

— FBI Jacksonville (@FBIJacksonville) September 23, 2019

• Identity Theft

Identity theft occurs when someone assumes your identity to perform a fraud or other criminal act.

First comes technology, and fraud is closed behind: identity theft through DNA test scams. https://t.co/1WYV5pgSX8 #DNATestScam

— Hawkins Elder Law (@HawkinsElderLaw) September 16, 2019

• Internet Fraud

Internet fraud is the use of Internet services or software with Internet access to defraud victims or to otherwise take advantage of them.

• Reverse Mortgage Scams

Reverse mortgage scams are engineered by unscrupulous professionals in a multitude of real estate, financial services, and related companies to steal the equity from the property of unsuspecting senior citizens or to use these seniors to unwittingly aid the fraudsters in stealing equity from a flipped property.

• Telemarketing Fraud

When you send money to people you do not know personally or give personal or financial information to unknown callers, you increase your chances of becoming a victim of telemarketing fraud.

The @FTC has recently seen a new twist on the #SocialSecurity imposter #scam. Check out this #SSA imposter #robocall, which says your benefits will end.

(That’s not true, by the way.) https://t.co/Wh9yoIWdmb 🔊 pic.twitter.com/m4Tv3Dc1Bn

— Stop Fraud Colorado (@StopFraudCo) September 15, 2019

Protect yourself from #Medicare fraud by knowing what to look for. If a caller says they’re from Medicare and asks for your Medicare number or other personal information – hang up. It’s probably a scam. https://t.co/OnQoc7GkAY pic.twitter.com/7lvXGmawof

— CMSGov (@CMSGov) September 12, 2019

BE AWARE OF THE WARNING SIGNS

There are typically warning signs or red flags. Below are just a few.

• Watch for unusual or unexplained bank account withdrawals, wire transfers, or other financial changes.
• There may be missing cash, belongings, or valuables from an older adult's home.
• The sudden or dramatic shift in investments can be a red flag.
• Unexpected changes in wills, trusts, power of attorney, or beneficiaries should be questioned.
• Older adults may exhibit concern or confusion about missing funds or credit card charges for items they typically don't purchase.
• Money borrowed from family or friends that are not repaid.
• Change in lifestyles or becoming more isolated from friends and family is another warning sign.

KNOW HOW TO GET HELP

If you're a professional caregiver, and older adult, or are concerned that a family member is involved in a scam or financial fraud, help is available.

There have been $1.7 billion of reported losses or attempted threats in connection with financial fraud against older adults. Here are some resources for professional caregivers, older adults and their families. #ElderFraud #KnowGreaterValue https://t.co/20QPjDuimG

— Lenore C. Sanchez CPA (@LenoreCPA) September 21, 2019

Suspected elder financial abuse may be reported to the Federal Trade Commission or 877-FTC-HELP and to the Senate Special Committee on Aging at 855-303-9470


Full Article & Source:
Fighting Fraud: A Guide to Keeping Your Money Safe

Senate panel looks to fund Alzheimer's research and resources

WASHINGTON – Public health leaders and caregivers coalesced Tuesday behind an effort to focus attention and funding on Alzheimer’s disease.

There was no dissent among the witnesses or the members of the Senate Special Committee on Aging about the need for more resources such as those called for in legislation introduced by U.S. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nevada.

Their bill would authorize $37 million annually to establish resource centers across the country, to enhance public-private partnerships, and to improve data collection on the incurable brain disease.

The Building Our Largest Dementia Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act – or BOLD Act – is an important step toward finding a cure, said U.S. Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, the committee’s ranking Democrat. He said the centers will particularly help rural Americans who need better access to resources.

Although there is no cure for Alzheimer’s, early diagnosis and intervention can be cost-effective and can help patients and their caregivers live better lives, testified Pennsylvania Secretary of Aging Teresa Osborne.

Better investment will afford Alzheimer’s patients “the opportunity to age in place in the setting of their choice with their friends and family with the dignity and respect that they deserve,” she said.

She also asked Congress to fund training and resources for first responders who can assist disoriented Alzheimer’s patients like the one another witness described.

Cheryll Woods-Flowers of Mount Pleasant, S.C., whose father died of Alzheimer’s in February, said his diagnosis came at age 70, shortly after he disappeared from home. Seven hours later he was found hungry, lost and crying.

He lived 16 more years with the disease, said his daughter, who is grateful for the early diagnosis that gave her and her five siblings time to talk through decisions, understand his wishes and get him on medication that reduced the severity of his symptoms.

Actress Marcia Gay Harden, whose mother, Beverly, has Alzheimer’s disease, said coping would have been easier if the BOLD Act already were in place.

“I wish we’d had BOLD,” because it would have provided specific resources directing them where to turn for resources about everything from finances to dietary needs of patients.

“Alzheimer’s becomes a stealthy thief, robbing families of their finances and security and forcing its victims to live only in the moment,” she said because it causes memories to evaporate.

Witnesses said they want Congress to pass the BOLD Act along with additional investments in Alzheimer’s research and education.

The current year’s appropriation is $1.8 billion – an increase of $414 million over last year, according to Aging Committee staff. Mr. Casey would like to see that funding reach $2 billion.

“Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias are among the greatest public health challenges facing older Americans,” Mr. Casey said. “As our population ages, the number of people living with the disease and their caregivers will only grow.”

Full Article & Source:
Senate panel looks to fund Alzheimer's research and resources

Half of Texas' Adult Guardianship Cases Violate Reporting Rules, Official Testifies

David Slayton testifies in front of the Senate Special Committee on Aging.

A top Texas court official has testified that 43 percent of the state's adult guardianship cases in a 27-county sample didn't comply with the minimum paperwork-reporting requirements.

David Slayton, administrative director of Texas' Office of Court Administration, also told the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging that guardians in some of the 27,000 reviewed cases played fast and loose with the money of people under their care.

"The project regularly found unauthorized withdrawals from accounts; unauthorized gifts to family members and friends; unsubstantiated and unauthorized expenses; and the lack of backup data to substantiate the accountings," Slayton said during an April 18 hearing on elder abuse.

Texas' guardianship program provides court-appointed caretakers for adults who, due to age or mental incapacity, can no longer look after themselves. The filing requirements are intended to show that guardians aren't ripping off or neglecting individuals in their care.

Slayton's testimony come less than a year after Gov. Greg Abbott used his line-item veto power to cancel a statewide program that would scrutinize guardianship cases for fraud or abuse. That move shaved an estimated $5 million (that's with an "m") off the $217 billion state budget (that's with a "b"), according to the governor's office.

At the time, Abbott said other recent improvements to the state's guardianship system should be allowed to work before he would authorize hiring more staff to conduct the reviews.

"The creation of a new state bureaucracy should be a last resort," he said in a written statement.

The data in Slayton's testimony came from a pilot project of the Office of Court Administration, which also found that 3,100 of the people under guardianship in its sample had died without courts knowing.

Attempts to contact both Slayton and the governor before press time were unsuccessful.

The findings are disturbing, but not necessarily surprising to Thomas Coleman, legal director for the Spectrum Institute, a California-based group that advocates for disabled people.

"The governor obviously doesn't care very much about  or people with disabilities or he wouldn't have vetoed that program," Coleman said. "God knows how many bad things are going on in the other counties because we don't yet know whether or not this is a representative sample."

Coleman added that the Texas guardianship system is "as bad or worse than any in the United States."

Earlier this month, Coleman's Spectrum Institute filed a class action complaint with the Texas Supreme Court arguing that the state's adult guardianship system violates parts of the Americans With Disabilities Act.

As of August 2017, 50,500 adults were under guardianship in Texas, up 5,200 from the previous year. Since 2012, the population of seniors in the state has increased 19 percent to 3.4 million.

The estates of people under guardianship in Texas have a combined value of $4-5 billion, Slayton testified.

Full Article & Source:
Half of Texas' Adult Guardianship Cases Violate Reporting Rules, Official Testifies

Arizonan Testifies At US Senate Committee On Aging And Isolation

Social isolation and loneliness can put older adults at risk for several chronic conditions. In fact, prolonged isolation is comparable to smoking 15 cigarettes a day, according to the AARP Foundation.

Thursday morning, members of the U.S. Senate Aging Committee started looking at ways to deal with this issue. One witness was from Arizona.

W. Mark Clark is the President and CEO of the Pima Council on Aging. He testified before the committee and talked about what factors contribute to social isolation and loneliness.

"People retiring from other states, move to communities like ours and leave behind their families, friends and support systems," Clark said. "We have become, in a very real sense, where the garage door is the front door."

Other challenges, he said, include: "Changes to mobility, cognitive ability or health status can cause an individual to hold back from previously enjoyed social activities. Older adults in rural areas who can no longer driver are at incredible risk of physical and social isolation unless transportation options are available."

Clark also said language barriers and acting as caregiver can lead to isolation.

Full Article & Source:
Arizonan Testifies At US Senate Committee On Aging And Isolation

Collins applauds law enforcement action on scams targeting seniors

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) lauded the recent announcement that 56 individuals and five India-based call centers had been arrested and indicted for impersonating government officials in scams targeting American seniors.

The arrests were the culmination of a three-year investigation spanning multiple federal agencies. It was the largest single domestic law enforcement action against Internal Revenue Service impersonation scams at one time.

Collins, the chairwoman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, and U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), the ranking member of the committee, have led bipartisan efforts to highlight scams targeting seniors and to provoke a strong response from federal law enforcement agencies.

“Putting a stop to aggressive and ruthless scams such as the IRS impersonation scam has long been one of my highest priorities as chairman of the Senate Aging Committee,” Collins said. “I applaud the efforts of our law enforcement in making these significant arrests, which represents the largest single domestic law enforcement action ever involving the IRS scam.”

Collins and McCaskill convened a hearing in April that looked at IRS impersonation scams and the steps law enforcement agencies have taken to stop them.

“I am pleased that the Aging Committee’s work to raise awareness about these troubling scams continues to help the Department of Justice track down criminals who are intent on robbing Americans of their hard-earned money,” Collins said. “These arrests should also put criminals on notice that we will be relentlessly pursuing these perpetrators.”

The committee’s fraud hotline received more than 1,100 calls from seniors across the country in 2015, and the IRS impersonation scam was among the most commonly reported.

Seniors lose about $2.9 billion to financial abuse and fraud each year, according to the Government Accountability Office.

Full Article & Source:
Collins applauds law enforcement action on scams targeting seniors

Senator Collins Warns Seniors to Beware New Tactic in the IRS Scam: Ruthless Scammers Are Now Demanding Payment in the Form of Gift Cards

Washington, D.C.—U.S. Senator Susan Collins, the Chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, is warning of a new variation of the pernicious IRS impersonation scam.  According to the U.S. Treasury Inspection General for Tax Administration, iTunes and other gift cards are now the primary form of payment demanded by con artists pretending to be IRS agents.

Scammers telephone victims, impersonate an IRS agent, and demand payment for allegedly unpaid taxes. The callers frequently threaten victims with arrest, foreclosure, or other adverse legal action.

Scammers often instruct their victims to pay using a money wire or prepaid debit card.  In the past several weeks, however, the Inspector General, has learned that IRS impersonation scammers increasingly are demanding payment in the form of iTunes or other gift cards.  Once these con artists have the numbers on the back of the activated gift cards, they can either use the cards for purchases or resell the cards to third parties online.  A recent Portland Press Herald article detailed how a resident of Kennebec County lost $1,000 in iTunes gift cards through a similar impersonation scam.

“This most recent variation of the IRS impersonation scam demonstrates that these fraudsters are relentless in their desire to rob our nation’s seniors of their hard-earned savings,” said Senator Collins.  “Putting a stop to such aggressive and ruthless scams is among my highest priorities as Chairman of the Aging Committee.  Hundreds of seniors in Maine and across the country have contacted the Committee’s Fraud Hotline to report that they have received these calls.”

With such scams reaching epidemic proportions across the country, the IRS has released several tips to help taxpayers identify suspicious calls that may be part of a scam:

    The IRS will never call a taxpayer to demand immediate payment, nor will the agency call about taxes owed without first having mailed a letter to the taxpayer.
    The IRS will never demand that a taxpayer pay taxes without giving him or her the opportunity to question or appeal the amount claimed to be owed.

    The IRS will never ask for a credit, debit, or gift card number over the phone.

    The IRS will never threaten to send local police or other law enforcement to have a taxpayer arrested.

    The IRS will never require a taxpayer to use a specific payment method for taxes, such as a prepaid debit card or gift card.

Last year, Senator Collins chaired a hearing at which the Inspector General testified that this scam was “the largest, most pervasive impersonation scam in the history of the IRS.”  Senator Collins advises seniors to simply hang up the phone if they receive an unexpected call from someone claiming to be from the IRS.  In addition, complaints can be made to TIGTA (1-800-366-4484), the FTC (1-877-382-4357), or to the Senate Aging Committee’s Fraud Hotline (1-855-303-9470).

According to the Government Accountability Office, seniors lose an estimated $2.9 billion to financial exploitation and fraud every year.  Earlier this year, Senator Collins unveiled a comprehensive anti-fraud resource guide titled, “Fighting Fraud: U.S. Senate Aging Committee Identifies Top 10 Scams Targeting Our Nation’s Seniors.”  The IRS imposter phone scam was listed as the #1 most prevalent fraud. 

Full Article & Source:
Senator Collins Warns Seniors to Beware New Tactic in the IRS Scam: Ruthless Scammers Are Now Demanding Payment in the Form of Gift Cards

Fraudulent IRS calls top list of scams targeting seniors

By Meg Haskell

Of the approximately 2,500 scams reported to the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging’s fraud hotline in 2015, the most prevalent involved harassing telephone calls from fraudsters identifying themselves as agents of the Internal Revenue Service and falsely accusing seniors of owing back taxes and penalties.

These “IRS impersonation scams” top a list of the 10 most common scams reported to the committee last year. U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, who chairs the bipartisan committee, released the list on Wednesday, along with a free, 40-page resource booklet aimed at educating and protecting seniors and their families.

“Putting a stop to these disturbing scams targeting our nation’s seniors is among my highest priorities as chairman of the Senate Aging Committee,” Collins said in a written statement. “I cannot emphasize enough how important it is that seniors and their families become aware of their techniques and take action to protect themselves and their loved ones from these heartless criminals.”

In order of prevalence, the top 10 most common scams reported last year were:

— IRS impersonation scams: Callers harass victims for unpaid taxes and penalties.

— Jamaican lottery/sweepstakes scam: Victims are told they have won a large amount of money and must send a check to process the award.

— Unsolicited and nuisance phone calls: Typically in the form of recorded “robo-calls,” this scam uses computer technology to telemarket fraudulent products and services and gain access to victims’ personal information.

— Computer scams: Scammers gain remote access to seniors’ personal computers by reporting a supposed problem with their security settings or other functions.

— Identity theft: Scammers gain access to victims’ Medicare, Social Security or financial information.

— Grandparent scams: Victims are told a grandchild or other relative is sick or in trouble and needs money immediately.

— Elder financial abuse: Family members, caregivers or trusted others improperly or illegally use elders’ money, property or other assets.

— Government grant scam: Victims are told they have been awarded a “government grant” and must send money to pay the taxes on it.

— Romance scams: Scammers set up fraudulent profiles on dating sites and persuade love-struck victims to send them money.

— Home improvement scams: Fraudulent door-to-door contractors or handyman services pursude homeowners to pay them upfront for work they will never do.

The resource booklet provides detailed information on each of these scams as well as eye-opening, real-life stories of con schemes, several reported by Mainers. It also gives tips for identifying likely scams, encourages seniors to consult with family members before responding to any demand for money and provides instructions for taking action if people suspect they have been targeted.

The booklet can be downloaded and printed from the website of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging or ordered through the mail by calling Collins’ Washington, D.C., office at 202-224-2523 or any of her in-state constituent offices.

Seniors who receive a suspicious phone call, computer contact or door-to-door solicitation, or who suspect they are the victim of fraud or a scam, can file a report at the aging committee hotline at 855-303-9470.

Full Article & Source:
Fraudulent IRS calls top list of scams targeting seniors